Multiprotocol audio/voice internet-of-things devices and related system

ABSTRACT

A system of multiprotocol audio/voice devices includes a plurality of consumer electronic multiprotocol audio/voice devices and a wearable multiprotocol audio/voice device accessible by a user. The wearable multiprotocol audio/voice device may determine wireless protocols acceptable by the plurality of consumer electronic multiprotocol audio/voice devices, and the user may control the plurality of consumer electronic multiprotocol audio/voice devices by the wearable multiprotocol audio/voice device without requiring a unique application. The wearable multiprotocol audio/voice device includes a package housing a digital signal processor (DSP), wireless communication modules, and a multipoint control unit (MCU) coupled to the DSP and the wireless communication modules. The DSP is coupled to a microphone and configured to provide voice control signals to the MCU. The wireless communication modules are coupled to antennas. The MCU enables wireless radio frequency (RF) communication links over the wireless protocols.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/788,201, filed on Oct. 19, 2017, the entire contents of which arehereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

The internet-of-things (IoT) refers to the networking of physicalobjects embedded with electronic devices. As more objects are networked,new ways of interacting with them become available. IoT devices cancollect, process, act on, and communicate data for such purposes asautomation, user reporting, and remote control. IoT devices are rapidlybeing deployed in home, industrial, metropolitan, and environmentalapplications, and using voice control for ease of use.

Multiple IoT devices can be connected using wireless radio frequency(RF) communication links. However, conventional IoT devices establishthe communication links by using various wireless protocols. Numerouswireless protocols exist, including WiFi™, Bluetooth™, ZigBee™, andmore. Manufacturers of different IoT devices may use any one of thesenumerous wireless protocols. The existence of numerous wirelessprotocols hinders linking all available IoT devices, and is commonlyreferred to as the “basket of remotes” problem.

In one solution, a unique software application is installed on an IoTdevice in order to enable it to communicate with IoT devices havingdifferent wireless protocols. This solution is difficult to implement,particularly due to the complexity of the software and the need for thesoftware developer to be familiar with the numerous wireless protocols.If installed on a device that uses voice control, the software may needto re-implement algorithms that relate voice commands to protocolcommands in light of the additional protocols. Moreover, it is difficultfor IoT devices operating only on a local network to install thesoftware.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed to multiprotocol audio/voiceinternet-of-things (IoT) devices and related system, substantially asshown in and/or described in connection with at least one of thefigures, and as set forth in the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a conventionalwireless communication system.

FIG. 2A illustrates a system diagram of a portion of an exemplarymultiprotocol audio/voice internet-of-things device (MAVID™) accordingto one implementation of the present application.

FIG. 2B illustrates a system diagram of a portion of an exemplarymultiprotocol audio/voice internet-of-things device (MAVID™) accordingto one implementation of the present application.

FIG. 3A illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication.

FIG. 3B illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication.

FIG. 3C illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description contains specific information pertaining toimplementations in the present disclosure. The drawings in the presentapplication and their accompanying detailed description are directed tomerely exemplary implementations. Unless noted otherwise, like orcorresponding elements among the figures may be indicated by like orcorresponding reference numerals. Moreover, the drawings andillustrations in the present application are generally not to scale, andare not intended to correspond to actual relative dimensions.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a conventionalwireless communication system. As illustrated in FIG. 1, wirelesscommunication system 100 includes router 102, speaker 104, laptopcomputer 106, light control panel 108, lights 110 a, 110 b, and 110 c,mobile phone 112, speaker 114, desktop computer 116, keyboard 118, andmouse 120.

As shown in FIG. 1, router 102 wirelessly connects to and communicateswith speaker 104 and laptop computer 106 using WiFi™ as the wirelessprotocol. The WiFi™ protocol includes the Institute of Electrical andElectronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards. For example the WiFi™protocol may be IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and/or 802.11n standardsand use 2.4 GHz and/or 5 GHz frequency bands. In the presentimplementation router 102, speaker 104, and laptop computer 106 haveintegrated WiFi™ modules that enable use of the WiFi™ protocol. TheWiFi™ protocol may be used, for example, to stream music and video fromrouter 102 to speaker 104 and laptop computer 106 respectively. Speaker104 may generally be any audio control system, such as a home theaterreceiver or headphones. Laptop computer 106 may generally be any datastorage and processing device, such as a tablet.

FIG. 1 also shows light control panel 108 wirelessly connects to andcommunicates with lights 110 a, 110 b, and 110 c using ZigBee™ as thewireless protocol. The ZigBee™ protocol includes versions of the ZigBee™Alliance specifications, such as ZigBee™ 2006 and/or ZigBee™ PRO. TheZigBee™ protocol may comply with IEEE 802.15.4 standards and use 868MHz, 915 MHz, and/or 2.4 GHz frequency bands. In the presentimplementation light control panel 108 and lights 110 a, 110 b, and 110c have integrated ZigBee™ modules that enable use of the ZigBee™protocol. The ZigBee™ protocol may be used, for example, to stream lightcontrol signals from light control panel 108 to lights 110 a, 110 b, and110 c Light control signals may change a lighting pattern, power off,change the color, change the speed, or revert to default color lights110 a, 110 b, and 110 c. Light control panel 108 may generally be anycontrol panel, such as a wall-mounted panel or a virtual display panelon a ZigBee™ integrated remote. Lights 110 a, 110 b, and 110 c maygenerally be any controllable light, such as a dimmable light, a redgreen blue light-emitting diode (RGB LED), or correlated colortemperature LED (CCT LED).

As further shown in FIG. 1, mobile phone 112 wirelessly connects to andcommunicates with speaker 114, and desktop computer 116 wirelesslyconnects to and communicates with keyboard 118 and mouse 120, usingBluetooth™ as the wireless protocol. The Bluetooth™ protocol includesversions of the Bluetooth™ specifications, such as Bluetooth™ BasicRate. Bluetooth™ Enhanced Data Rate (EDR), and/or Bluetooth™ Low Energy(LE). The Bluetooth™ protocol may comply with IEEE 802.15.1 standardsand use the 2.4 GHz frequency band. In the present implementation mobilephone 112, speaker 114, desktop computer 116, keyboard 118, and mouse120 have integrated Bluetooth™ modules that enable use of the Bluetooth™protocol. The Bluetooth™ protocol may be used, for example, to streammusic from mobile phone 112 to speaker 114, and to stream interfacecontrol signals from keyboard 118 and mouse 120 to desktop computer 116.Speaker 114 may generally be any audio control system, such as a hometheater receiver or headphones. Desktop computer 116 may generally beany data storage and processing device, such as a tablet. Keyboard 118and mouse 120 may generally be any human interface device, such as ajoystick.

Notably, in wireless communication system 100, devices having differentwireless protocols do not connect to and communicate with each other.For example, WiFi™-enabled router 102 does not communicate withZigBee™-enabled light control panel 108, and neither WiFi™-enabledrouter 102 nor ZigBee™-enabled light control panel 108 communicates withBluetooth™-enabled speaker 114. In practice, use of numerous IoT devicesburdens a user with a need for multiple gateways, one for each protocol.

FIG. 2A illustrates a system diagram of a portion of an exemplarymultiprotocol audio/voice internet-of-things device (MAVID™) accordingto one implementation of the present application. MAVID™ is a trademarkof Libre Wireless Technologies, Inc. As illustrated in FIG. 2A, MAVID™230 includes package 232, antennas 234 a and 234 b, diplexer 236, RFswitches 237 and 238, dual-band wireless communication module 240,having WiFi™ communication module 242, Bluetooth™ communication module244 and Bluetooth™ LE communication module 245, ZigBee™ communicationmodule 246, third generation and fourth generation mobile technology(3G/4G) communication module 248, multipoint control unit (MCU) 250,microphone 252, lines 280 and 282, digital signal processor (DSP) 254,quad serial peripheral interface (QSPI) flash memory 256, random accessmemory (RAM) 257 and power supply 258.

As shown in FIG. 2A, diplexer 236, RF switches 237 and 238, dual-bandwireless communication module 240, having WiFi™ communication module242. Bluetooth™ communication module 244, and Bluetooth™ LEcommunication module 245, ZigBee™ communication module 246, MCU 250 DSP254 and power supply 258 are located inside package 232. Package 232 maybe a small form factor package having dimensions of approximately oneinch by inch (1″×1″) or less. As also shown in FIG. 2A, antennas 234 aand 234 b, 3G/4G communication module 248, microphone 252. QSPI flashmemory 256, and RAM 257 are located outside package 232. Antennas 234 aand 234 b, 3G/4G communication module 248, microphone 252, QSPI flashmemory 256, and RAM 257 may be located, for example, on a printedcircuit board (PCB) (not shown in FIG. 2A). Package 232 may also belocated on the PCB.

Antennas 234 a and 234 b located outside package 232 are used to receiveor transmit RF signals according to various wireless protocols. Forexample, antenna 234 a is used to receive or transmit RF signalsaccording to the WiFi™ and Bluetooth™ protocols, and antenna 234 b isused to receive or transmit RF signals according to the ZigBee™protocol. Antennas 234 a and 234 b may be, for example, patch antennasor microstrip antennas or other types of antennas. In oneimplementation, antennas 234 a and 234 b may each be an antenna arrayhaving more than one element.

As shown in FIG. 2A, antenna 234 a is used for both WiFi™ and Bluetooth™protocols. Antenna 234 a is coupled to diplexer 236. Diplexer 236differentiates RF signals in different frequency bands. For example, inthe present implementation, diplexer 236 differentiates signals in the2.4 GHz frequency band from signals in the 5 GHz frequency band. The 5GHz signals are coupled to RF switch 237, which switches the signalsbetween transmit and receive lines, and are then coupled to WiFi™communication module 242 in dual band wireless communication module 240.The 2.4 GHz signals are coupled to RF switch 238, which switches thesignals between transmit and receive lines, and are then coupled toWiFi™ communication module 242 and Bluetooth™ communication module 244in dual band wireless communication module 240. Antenna 234 b is coupledto ZigBee™ communication module 246. In one implementation, antenna 234b may be used for more than one wireless protocol.

WiFi™ communication module 242, Bluetooth™ communication module 244, andZigBee™ communication module 246 process RF signals according to thestandards of the WiFi™ protocol, the Bluetooth™ protocol, and theZigBee™ protocol respectively. Because concurrent use of multiplewireless protocols generally results in interference and collisions,WiFi™ communication module 242, Bluetooth™ communication module 244, andZigBee™ communication module 246 are also responsive to and controlledby control signals from MCU 250. As shown in FIG. 2A, WiFi™communication module 242, Bluetooth™ communication module 244, andZigBee™ communication module 246 are coupled to MCU 250 through hardwarecommunication interfaces, such as secure digital input output (SDIO),universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter (UART), and pulse codemodulation (PCM) interfaces. These interfaces are bidirectional,allowing the communication modules to report data to MCU 250 foradditional processing, and allowing MCU 250 to send control signals tothe communication modules. For example, WiFi™ communication module 242,Bluetooth™ communication module 244, and ZigBee™ communication module246 may report information regarding current and planned operationalstates, bit and packet error rates, signal and noise power levels,frequencies and channels and tuning. MCU 250 may perform interferenceassessments based on information reported by the communication modules,determine interference solutions based on the interference assessments,and send control signals to the communication modules based on thedetermined interference solutions. Thus, MCU acts as a packet trafficarbiter (PTA) to manage the coexistence of multiple wireless protocols,enabling MAVID™ 230 to concurrently form wireless RF communication linksover those multiple wireless protocols.

In FIG. 2A, 3G/4G module 248 is coupled to MCU 250. MCU 250 interactswith 3G/4G module in substantially the same manner as the other wirelesscommunication modules described above. 3G/4G module may be locatedoutside package 232 for other considerations such as size, heatdissipation, and/or electrical isolation. Optionally, as shown in FIG.2A, dual-band wireless communication module 240 is coupled to ZigBee™module 246 through a PTA interface, to more efficiently compare datafrom dual-band wireless communication module 240 with data from ZigBee™module 246 and reduce the processing burden of MCU 250. In oneimplementation, MAVID™ 230 may form wireless RF communication links overother wireless protocols instead of, or in addition to, those shown inFIG. 2A. For example, MAVID™ 230 may use Long Range (LoRa), Z-Wave,Digital Enhanced Cordless Technology (DECT), and any other wirelessprotocols.

As shown in FIG. 2A, MAVID™ 230 includes microphone 252. Microphone 252is configured to receive voice from a user. In the presentimplementation, microphone 252 is a microphone array with threemicrophone elements. Microphone 252 may provide beamforming capabilityto improve reception of far-field voice and enable voice tracking. Invarious implementations, microphone 252 may be a single microphoneelement or a microphone array with more or fewer microphone elementsthan shown in FIG. 2A. The number of microphone elements may depend onhow critical sound is for MAVID™ 230.

Microphone 252 is coupled to DSP 254 through line 280. DSP 254 isconfigured to receive and process voice signals from microphone 252. DSP254 performs voice signal conditioning, such as noise filtration, voicecleanup, and gain control. DSP 254 also performs voice recognitionanalysis. Optionally, as shown in FIG. 2A, microphone 252 may be coupledto MCU 250 through line 282, and then coupled to DSP 254. In oneimplementation, DSP 254 employs a wake-up scheme wherein components ofMAVID™ 230 are kept in a low-power operational state until theoccurrence of a detectable event, such as DSP 254 recognizing a userspeaking “Jarvis” or another keyword.

As shown in FIG. 2A, DSP 254 is coupled to MCU 250 through hardwarecommunication interfaces, such serial peripheral interface (SPI),inter-integrated circuit (I2C), general purpose input output (GPIO), andinter-IC sound (I2S) interfaces. These interfaces allow MCU 250 toprovide feedback to DSP 254, and DSP 254 to provide voice controlsignals to MCU 250. MCU 250 is configured to enable wireless RFcommunication links over multiple wireless protocols in response to thevoice control signals received from DSP 254. For example, while MAVID™230 is streaming audio to a speaker (not shown in FIG. 2A) over theBluetooth™ protocol, a user may speak the words “lights show.” DSP 254may provide a voice control signal to MCU 250 corresponding to voicerecognition of the words “lights show.” MCU 250 may process both thevoice control signal and information reported by Bluetooth™communication module 244, and then enable MAVID™ 230 to connect tolights (not shown in FIG. 2A) over the ZigBee™ protocol whilemaintaining the connection to the speaker over the Bluetooth™ protocol.In other examples, MCU 250 enables MAVID™ 230 to communicate overmultiple wireless protocols in response to voice control signalscorresponding to voice recognition of different words.

As also shown in FIG. 2A, MAVID™ 230 includes QSPI flash memory 256coupled to MCU 250. MCU 250 may process information stored in QSPI flashmemory 256, in addition to voice control signals and informationreported by wireless communication modules. For example, QSPI flashmemory 256 may store a previous multiprotocol connection'sconfiguration, so that MCU 250 can access the configuration and reduceprocessing burden of MCU 250 upon a similar subsequent multiprotocolconnection. As also shown in FIG. 2A, MAVID™ 230 includes RAM 257coupled to MCU 250. MCU 250 may process information stored in RAM 257,in addition to voice control signals and information reported bywireless communication modules. RAM 257 may be, for example, double datarate (DDR) synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM) or DDR static RAM (SRAM).

MCU 250 may process information from external hardware communicationinterfaces such as external inter-IC sound (I2S) (shown as “Aux In(I2S)” in FIG. 2A), serial peripheral interface (SPI), inter-integratedcircuit (I2C), general purpose input output (GPIO), pulse widthmodulation (PWM), universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART),secure digital/secure digital input output (SD/SDIO), and/or universalserial bus (USB) interfaces. Power supply 258 supplies power tocomponents of MAVID™ 230.

FIG. 28 illustrates a system diagram of a portion of an exemplarymultiprotocol audio/voice internet-of-things device (MAVID™) accordingto one implementation of the present application. As illustrated in FIG.2B, MAVID™ 231 includes package 233 having antennas 235 a and 235 b andmicrophone input interface 253. In FIG. 2B, package 233 is asystem-level package, such as PCB or ceramic system-in-package (SiP),and may be larger than small form factor package 232 in FIG. 2A.Microphone input interface 253 enables MAVID™ 231 to receive voice froma user. For example, package 233 may house one or moremicroelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones that receive voicefrom a user through microphone input interface 253. The MEMS microphonesmay be, for example, condenser, electret, or piezoresistive MEMSmicrophones. Microphone input interface 253 may be, for example, anaperture that enables diaphragms and other components of the MEMSmicrophones to interact with external user voice. MAVID™ 231 isconfigured to connect to a variety of host/control interfaces, such asthrough external hardware communication interfaces discussed above.These host/control interfaces enable external hardware to communicatewith drivers in MAVID™ 231. MAVID™ 231 is also configured to connect toa variety of memory expansion options. In various implementations,memory expansions may be external to package 233, internal to package233, or partially external and partially internal. Memory expansions mayinclude QSPI flash memory. DDR SDRAM, DDR SRAM, or any other type ofmemory.

MAVID™ 231 in FIG. 2B is an alternative implementation to MAVID™ 230 inFIG. 2A, in that MAVID™ 231 in FIG. 2B is not divided into physically orlogically distinct modules that separately perform the functionalitiesof dual-band wireless communication module 240. WiFi™ communicationmodule 242, Bluetooth™ communication module 244, Bluetooth™ LEcommunication module 245. ZigBee™ communication module 246, 3G/4Gcommunication module 248, DSP 254, MCU 250, diplexer 236, RF switches237 and 238, QSPI flash memory 256, RAM 257, and/or microphone 252.Instead, MAVID™ 231 in FIG. 2B can perform the same or similarfunctionalities as MAVID™ 230 in FIG. 2A without requiring or needingseparate physically or logically distinct modules. For example, auniquely combined circuitry in MAVID™ 231 in FIG. 2B can perform all orsome of the functions performed separately by dual-band wirelesscommunication module 240. WiFi™ communication module 242. Bluetooth™communication module 244, Bluetooth™ LE communication module 245,ZigBee™ communication module 246, 3G/4G communication module 248, DSP254. MCU 250, diplexer 236, RF switches 237 and 238, QSPI flash memory256, RAM 257, and/or microphone 252 in MAVID™ 230 in FIG. 2A.

Antennas 235 a, 235 b, and 235 c in FIG. 28 are used to receive ortransmit RF signals according to various wireless protocols. In thepresent implementation, antennas 235 a, 235 b, and 235 c are coupled toenabling circuits in package 233. Antenna 235 a is used to receive ortransmit RF signals according to the WiFi™ and Bluetooth™ protocols.Antennas 235 band 235 c are used to receive or transmit RF signalsaccording to the ZigBee™ and 3G/4G protocols respectively. Antennas 235a, 235 b, and 235 c may be, for example, patch antennas or microstripantennas or other types of antennas. In one implementation, antennas 235a, 235 b, and 235 c may each be an antenna array having more than oneelement. Antennas 235 a and 235 b in FIG. 2B may correspond to antennas234 a and 234 b in FIG. 2A respectively. As shown in FIG. 2B, antenna235 a may be used for both WiFi™ and Bluetooth™ protocols. In variousimplementations, one or each of antennas 235 b and 235 c may be used formore than one wireless protocol.

For the purpose of an example only, an exemplary use of MAVID™ 231 isdescribed hereafter. While MAVID™ 231 is streaming audio to a speaker(not shown in FIG. 2B) over the Bluetooth™ protocol using antenna 235 a,a user may speak the words “lights show.” MAVID™ 231 may process theuser's words and information regarding RF signals at antenna 235 a, andthen MAVID™ 231 may connect to lights (not shown in FIG. 2B) over theZigBee™ protocol using antenna 235 b, while maintaining the connectionto the speaker over the Bluetooth™ protocol using antenna 235 a. Thus,without requiring installation of a unique software application, MAVID™231 in FIG. 2B communicates over multiple wireless protocols in responseto a voice command from a user.

FIG. 3A illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication. As illustrated in FIG. 3A, wireless communication system300 a includes speaker 314, router 302, television 362, cloud platform363, user 360, and wearable MAVID™ 330. Speaker 314 and router 302 inFIG. 3A may generally correspond to speaker 114 and router 102 in FIG. 1respectively. In the present implementation, television 362 and router302 have integrated WiFi™ modules, and speaker 314 has an integratedBluetooth™ module. Wearable MAVID™ 330 may be any MAVID™ ergonomicallydesigned to be worn by a user without creating a substantialobstruction. In the present implementation, wearable MAVID™ 330 is anecklace. In various implementations wearable MAVID™ may be, forexample, a button, a watch, eyeglasses, headphones, or an earpiece.Wearable MAVID™ 330 in FIG. 3A may have any other implementations andadvantages described above with respect to MAVID™ 230 in FIG. 2A.

In FIG. 3A, wireless communication system 300 a may correspond to an“in-home” setting. As shown in FIG. 3A, wearable MAVID™ 330 connects tospeaker 314 over the Bluetooth™ protocol and connects to television 362over the WiFi™ protocol. Wearable MAVID™ 330 may control speaker 314 andtelevision 362 by voice command from user 360. For example, wearableMAVID™ 330 may power on both Bluetooth™-enabled speaker 314 andWiFi™-enabled television 362 in response to a voice command from user360. Wearable MAVID™ 330 also connects to router 302 over the WiFi™protocol. Router 302 then connects to television 362 over the WiFi™protocol and connects to cloud platform 363 over an internet protocol(IP) connection. Wearable MAVID™ 330 may control router 302 by voicecommand from user 360. For example, wearable MAVID™ 330 may instructrouter 302 to connect to and utilize television 362 and cloud platform363 in response to a voice command from user 360.

FIG. 3B illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication. As illustrated in FIG. 3B, wireless communication system300 b includes home 364 having lighting system 310, user 360, andwearable MAVID™ 330. In FIG. 3B, wireless communication system 300 b maycorrespond to a “near-home” setting. As shown in FIG. 3B, wearableMAVID™ 330 connects to lighting system 310 over the ZigBee™ protocol.Wearable MAVID™ 330 may control lighting system 310 by voice commandfrom user 360. For example, wearable MAVID™ 330 may power off ZigBee™enabled lighting system 310 in response to a voice command from user360.

FIG. 3C illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication. As illustrated in FIG. 3C, wireless communication system300 c includes base station 366 user 360, and wearable MAVID™ 330. InFIG. 3C, wireless communication system 300 c may correspond to an“away-from-home” setting. As shown in FIG. 3C, wearable MAVID™ 330connects to base station 366 over the 3G/4G protocol. Wearable MAVID™330 may communicate with base station 366 by voice command from user360. For example, wearable MAVID™ 330 may initiate a phone call throughbase station 366 in response to a voice command from user 360. Asillustrated in FIGS. 3A-3C, the same wearable MAVID™ 330 can be used indifferent settings to connect to, and voice control, IoT devices usingdifferent wireless protocols.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication. As illustrated in FIG. 4, wireless communication system 400includes user 460, MAVID™ 430, and a plurality of endpoint devices,including router 402, light control panel 408, home appliance 409,speaker 414, base station 466, parking meter 468, electronic door lock470, and phone dock 472. Router 402, light control panel 408, andspeaker 414 in FIG. 4 may generally correspond to router 102, lightcontrol panel 108, and speaker 114 in FIG. 1. Base station 466, parkingmeter 468, electronic door lock 470, and phone dock 472 are integratedwith appropriate modules to enable use of the 3G/4G, LoRa, Z-Wave, andDECT protocols respectively. Home appliance 409 may be any home IoTdevice integrated with a ZigBee™ module, such as a television, acomputer, a printer, a flash drive, an on-board diagnostics (OBD)dongle, a refrigerator, a coffee maker, a home security alarm, asecurity camera, a washer, a dryer, a thermostat, or a heatingventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) device.

As shown in FIG. 4, MAVID™ 430 can connect to each endpoint device overits respective protocol and control them by voice commands from user460. Specifically. MAVID™ 430 connects to router 402, light controlpanel 408, home appliance 409, speaker 414, base station 466, parkingmeter 468 electronic door lock 470, and phone dock 472 over WiFi™,ZigBee™, ZigBee™, Bluetooth™, 3G/4G. LoRa, Z-Wave, and DECT protocolsrespectively. MAVID™ 430 may determine a wireless protocol acceptable byeach endpoint device as part of this connection. For example, inresponse to a voice command from user 460, MAVID™ 430 may use variousprotocols until it determines that an endpoint device sufficientlycorresponds to the voice command, and then connect to that endpointdevice. In an alternative example, MAVID™ 430 may perform a completescan of all protocols and then make a determination which endpointdevice most closely corresponds to the voice command. Various algorithmsmay be used for determining the correspondence between voice commandsand the desired endpoint device. In one implementation, these algorithmsmay be based in part on a location estimation derived from, for example,signal power levels at MAVID™ 430 or a global positioning system (GPS)module interfaced with MAVID™ 430. In another implementation, thesealgorithms may be based in part on information stored in a memory ofMAVID™ 430, such as previous connection information stored in QSPI flashmemory 256 of FIG. 2A. When MAVID™ 430 is connected with an endpointdevice. MAVID™ 430 can also control the endpoint device in response tovoice commands from user 460. Various algorithms may also be used todetermine how voice commands from user 460 correspond to commands in thegiven wireless protocol. For example, an algorithm executed by MCU 250of FIG. 2A may determine that the voice command “louder” from user 460corresponds to a “VOLUME UP” command of a standardized audio profile ofthe Bluetooth™ protocol.

When using multiprotocol devices in the present implementation, IoTdevices having different wireless protocols can be convenientlycontrolled from a single MAVID™ gateway by voice command. Also, the needfor installing a unique application to connect to each IoT device havinga unique wireless protocol is reduced and voice control algorithmsgenerally do not need to be re-implemented; and IoT devices, especiallyIoT devices operating only on a local network, would generally not needto install new software.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary diagram of a portion of a wirelesscommunication system according to one implementation of the presentapplication. As illustrated in FIG. 5, wireless communication system 500includes user 560, MAVID™ 530, and a plurality of consumer electronicMAVIDs™, including router 502, light control panel 508, home appliance509, speaker 514, base station 566, parking meter 568, electronic doorlock 570, phone dock 572, and MAVID™ chips 531. In FIG. 5, router 502light control panel 508, home appliance 509, speaker 514, base station566, parking meter 568, electronic door lock 570, and phone dock 572 areeach integrated with one of MAVID™ chips 531, rather than a singularwireless protocol module—as was the case with respect to FIG. 4.

By embedding MAVID™ chips 531 in each consumer electronic MAVID™,multiple consumer electronics can be conveniently controlled from asingle gateway by voice command. In the present implementation, MAVID™530 is a gateway. In various implementations, any of MAVIDs™ 531 may bea gateway instead of or in addition to MAVID™ 530. Moreover, usingMAVID™ chips 531 in each consumer electronic MAVID™ facilitates dynamicselection of wireless protocols. For example, MAVID™ 530 and a consumerelectronic MAVID™ integrated with one of MAVID™ chips 531 may becommunicating over the Bluetooth™ protocol, and then, based on distancecalculations, signal strengths, bit error rates, scans, or informationstored in memory may coordinate with each other and switch tocommunicating over the ZigBee™ protocol if determined to beadvantageous.

When using multiprotocol devices in the present implementation, IoTdevices having different wireless protocols can be convenientlycontrolled from a single MAVID™ gateway by voice command. Moreover, inthe present implementation, because a unique software application (i.e.a unique “app”) is not required to connect to each IoT device that isitself a consumer electronic MAVID™, i.e. itself has a MAVID™ chipembedded therein voice control algorithms do not need to bere-implemented, and the MAVID™-enabled IoT devices do not need toinstall new software.

Thus, various implementations of the present application achieveimproved multiprotocol audio/voice devices for use in wireless IoTapplications. From the above description it is manifest that varioustechniques can be used for implementing the concepts described in thepresent application without departing from the scope of those concepts.Moreover, while the concepts have been described with specific referenceto certain implementations, a person of ordinary skill in the art wouldrecognize that changes can be made in form and detail without departingfrom the scope of those concepts. As such, the described implementationsare to be considered in all respects as illustrative and notrestrictive. It should also be understood that the present applicationis not limited to the particular implementations described above, butmany rearrangements, modifications, and substitutions are possiblewithout departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

1-22. (canceled)
 23. A system, comprising: a multiprotocol audio/voicedevice including: two or more communication circuits, each of which isconfigured to process an RF signal according to a distinctive wirelessprotocol; a multipoint control unit (MCU) configured to receiveinformation reported by the two or more communication circuits, andmanage a coexistence of multiple RF communication links over differentwireless protocols; a microphone configured to receive a voice from auser and generate voice signals; a digital signal processor (DSP)configured to perform voice recognition analysis on the voice signalsfrom the microphone, and employ a wake-up scheme to change anoperational state of the multiprotocol audio/voice device on occurrenceof a detectable event via the voice recognition analysis; and a flashmemory configured to store a previous multiprotocol connection'sconfiguration to reduce processing burden of the MCU upon a subsequentmultiprotocol connection; the multiprotocol audio/voice device beingconfigured to: receive a voice command; in response to the voicecommand, connect to and utilize a cloud platform over a first wirelessprotocol, and connect to a consumer electronic device over a secondwireless protocol.
 24. The system of claim 23, wherein the firstwireless protocol or the second wireless protocol comprises WiFi,ZigBee, Bluetooth, third generation mobile technology (3G), fourthgeneration mobile technology (4G), Long Range (LoRa), Z-Wave, IR remote,and Digital Enhanced Cordless Technology (DECT).
 25. The system of claim23, wherein, to connect to and utilize the cloud platform, themultiprotocol audio/voice device is configured to: connect to a routerover the first wireless protocol; and instruct the router to connect toand utilize the cloud platform over an internet protocol (IP)connection.
 26. The system of claim 23, wherein the consumer electronicdevice is selected from the group consisting of: a speaker, atelevision, a lighting system, a telephone, a computer, a printer, aflash drive, an on-board diagnostics (OBD) dongle, a refrigerator, acoffee maker, a home security alarm, a security camera, a thermostat,and a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) device.
 27. Thesystem of claim 26, wherein the multiprotocol audio/voice device isconfigured to connect to the consumer electronic device over a wirelesscommunication without internet.
 28. The system of claim 27, wherein themultiprotocol audio/voice device is configured to process the voicecommand with the DSP, without connecting to the internet.
 29. The systemof claim 23, wherein the multiprotocol audio/voice device is selectedfrom the group consisting of: a necklace, a button, a watch, eyeglasses,headphones, a hub, a remote, a speaker and an earpiece.
 30. The systemof claim 23, wherein, to connect to the consumer electronic device, themultiprotocol audio/voice device is configured to determine the secondwireless protocol acceptable by the consumer electronic device.
 31. Thesystem of claim 23, wherein, to connect to the consumer electronicdevice, the multiprotocol audio/voice device is configured to determinethe second wireless protocol acceptable by the consumer electronicdevice based on a location estimation.
 32. The system of claim 23,wherein, to connect to the consumer electronic device, the multiprotocolaudio/voice device is configured to determine the second wirelessprotocol acceptable by the consumer electronic device based oninformation in the flash memory of the multiprotocol audio/voice device.33. The system of claim 23, wherein the multiprotocol audio/voice deviceis a gateway.
 34. A system of multiprotocol audio/voice devicescomprising: a plurality of consumer electronic devices; a multiprotocolaudio/voice device including: two or more communication circuits, eachof which is configured to process an RF signal according to adistinctive wireless protocol; a multipoint control unit (MCU)configured to receive information reported by the two or morecommunication circuits, and manage a coexistence of multiple RFcommunication links over different wireless protocols; a microphoneconfigured to receive a voice from a user and generate voice signals; adigital signal processor (DSP) configured to perform voice recognitionanalysis on the voice signals from the microphone, and employ a wake-upscheme to change an operational state of the multiprotocol audio/voicedevice on occurrence of a detectable event via the voice recognitionanalysis; and a flash memory configured to store a previousmultiprotocol connection's configuration to reduce processing burden ofthe MCU upon a subsequent multiprotocol connection; the multiprotocolaudio/voice device being configured to, in response to a voice command,connect to and utilize a cloud platform over a first wireless protocol,and connect to a consumer electronic device of the plurality of consumerelectronic devices over a second wireless protocol.
 35. The system ofclaim 34, wherein the first wireless protocol or the second wirelessprotocol comprises WiFi, ZigBee, Bluetooth, third generation mobiletechnology (3G), fourth generation mobile technology (4G), Long Range(LoRa), Z-Wave, IR remote, and Digital Enhanced Cordless Technology(DECT).
 36. The system of claim 34, wherein, to connect to and utilizethe cloud platform, the multiprotocol audio/voice device is configuredto: connect to a router over the first wireless protocol; and instructthe router to connect to and utilize the cloud platform over an internetprotocol (IP) connection.
 37. The system of claim 34, wherein theplurality of consumer electronic devices are selected from the groupconsisting of: a speaker, a television, a lighting system, a telephone,a computer, a printer, a flash drive, an on-board diagnostics (OBD)dongle, a refrigerator, a coffee maker, a home security alarm, asecurity camera, a thermostat, and a heating, ventilation, and airconditioning (HVAC) device.
 38. The system of claim 37, wherein themultiprotocol audio/voice device is configured to connect to theconsumer electronic device over a wireless communication withoutinternet.
 39. the system of claim 38, wherein the multiprotocolaudio/voice device is configured to process the voice command with theDSP, without connecting to the internet.
 40. The system of claim 34,wherein the multiprotocol audio/voice device is selected from the groupconsisting of: a necklace, a button, a watch, eyeglasses, headphones, ahub, a remote, a speaker and an earpiece.
 41. The system of claim 34,wherein, to connect to the consumer electronic device, the multiprotocolaudio/voice device is configured to determine the second wirelessprotocol acceptable by the consumer electronic device.
 42. The system ofclaim 34, wherein, to connect to the consumer electronic device, themultiprotocol audio/voice device is configured to determine the secondwireless protocol acceptable by the consumer electronic device based ona location estimation.